The Queen
by Anne Aragon
Summary: What if Henry viii already had the male heir he'd always desired would he still have fallen for Anne Boleyn
1. Chapter 1

This is based on the show Tudors

This chapter is a tester but if people like it I would gladly continue

I screwed up with history a lot to fit in my story! Sorry

Disclaimer: I do not own anything!

Happy reading

Whitehall Palace

December 1518

Lady Elizabeth Darrell, maid of honour to Queen Katherine of Aragon, couldn't help but smile, she was with the rest of the ladies in waiting helping the Queen prepare for the evenings celebrations, the Queen was different today, happier, Elizabeth decided and she knew why, the holidays were among them and Queen Katherine's children were coming back to court.

Elizabeth had heard of the difficulties the Queen had faced in child bearing, every child born to the royal couple were either miscarried or still born, apparently the King had even given up hope of having any children until Bessie Blount, King Henry's mistress had given birth to a boy, christened Henry in the Kings honour, the court had been celebrating as if a legitimate son had been born, plans were already in progress to try to legitimatise young Fitzroy, it was believed that Bessie Blount and her family would be honoured beyond belief for giving King Henry his first and only child, bastard or not, the King had claimed him as his own.

The Queen however was also with child, although no one believed that this child would survive, they were proven wrong and within a short month after the King's bastard son had been born. The Royale couple after many years of trying finally had a child.

Princess Mary's birth had quickly overshadowed that of Henry Fitzroy's, the King had a legitimate child, even if it was a girl, his delight was evident, taking her with him to important meetings and referring to her as 'the pearl of his world'.

The King however did not forget about his bastard son, Henry might not have paid him as much attention as he had done the first month of Fitzroy's birth but plans were underway to give the young bastard titles and estates, even though it was against the Queens wishes, however before young Fitzroy could receive such gifts, Queen Katherine announced that she was with child, Henry out of respect for his wife and daughter had decided to wait until after the birth before he bestowed the titles on his son, not daring to hope that God would gift him with a legitimate son, and a King for England.

Like the King, the Court and all of England did not believe the Queen could carry a second child to term but to the surprise of many; she did and delivered a healthy boy, to the delight of King and Country.

Edward had been born, the Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the throne and the next King of England, the King had a son, and all of England was celebrating.

After the birth of Prince Edward, Henry Fitzroy's life drastically changed, the King scrapped all plans of trying to legitimise him and all but forgot about his first born child. Supporters of Bessie Blount quickly changed sides and Bessie herself removed herself from Court life

Lady Darrell looked over at Mary Boleyn, the King's current mistress, she harboured nothing but loathing for the women. Queen Katherine had done nothing but show kindness to the girl, and how did Mary repay her, by bedding Katherine's husband.

Mary Boleyn was the worst thing a women could become, known as the "Great Prostitute" throughout the French court, she had done nothing to prove the name wrong, Elizabeth's eyes wandered over to Anne Boleyn, Mary's younger sister, Elizabeth only talked to the younger Boleyn girl when she had to, believing her to be exactly like her sister.

Mary Boleyn had been unwell for quite some time, although she had dared not tell anyone, she had been to see the _physician and was surprised by what she was told, surprised but excited._

Her excitement soon diminished. She had been the King's mistress for over six months and like she always did with the men she bedded, Mary was starting to fall for his Majesty. She had started to believe that he felt the same way, she had started to dream about what her life could be like, she of course could never be Queen but as the love of Henry's life, she could become maîtresse en titres and eventually have more influence then Queen Katherine, she had believed tonight's celebration would be the first stepping stone, tonight his Majesty's children would return to court and Mary believed that Henry would introduce them to her. Show them and the entire court that Mary was the love of his life and nothing and nobody could change that.

She was sadly mistaken, Mary's dreams came crashing down when Henry in no uncertain terms told her to stay away from the royal children, when she had dared to question why, he had bluntly told her that he did not want his children to know that he had a mistress, and had ended there conversation by telling Mary that she was to be married off to William Carey. Mary had run off in tears, forgetting completely what the physician had told her. She would have stayed in her apartment all night if her father had not threatened to drag her out.

King Henry the eight could be described as many things, handsome, cruel, generous, but Henry did not waste his time thinking about what people thought of him, he was of course King after all. There were only three people's opinions he cared about, the first was his beloved wife, Katherine;

Katherine was the love of his life, although he did not treat her as well as he should have, bedding which ever women took his fancy, he went out of his way to keep his many flings hidden and making sure he paid more attention to his wife then any mistress.

The other two, were his children. Henry had thought so badly of his father, he had promised himself that his children would never think of him that way, there opinion of him, meant the world to him.

That was why Henry had dismissed Mary Boleyn, people gossiped at court; especially the servants and it would not surprise Henry if Mary or Edward overheard his relationship with Mary Boleyn being discussed.

With a sigh, Henry opened one of the many letters on his desk, he quickly read it, and then scrunched it up. The letter was from one Elizabeth Blount, now known as Elizabeth Tailboys, it was a request for Henry to come and see young Henry Fitzroy, known as Harry, Henry chuckled at the irony; Harry was the name he went by before he had become King Henry.

Apparently the boy was excelling in his studies. Henry had a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach, it was a feeling he always had, when he thought about his eldest son.

Henry missed young Harry, although he would never admit it, not to anyone. Fitzroy had been his first child and for a short while he had doted on the boy but after all the pain Katherine had gone through to bless Henry with two healthy living children, paying attention to his eldest son felt like a sin to him.

Harry was proof of Henry's many infidelities and the pain he caused Katherine, going to see him would just make everything worse. He had sworn to himself that he would have no contact with the boy.

With a sigh, Henry walked out of the room, deciding to dine with his wife, some time together would be good for both of them before the festivities began and their children arrived.

He was right, Henry decided as he sat across from his wife, listening to her talk about her day, her ladies had been dismissed and it was only the two of them, a rare joy, one Henry wished they could indulge in more often.

"Sir Cox writes that Mary and Edward are excelling in their studies" Katherine continued

Henry couldn't help but smile, he knew his children were both intelligent and the fact that Mary was a girl did not mean that she could not have the same education as Edward.

Sir Richard Cox and Sir John Cheke were two gifted scholars, perfect as tutors for the young royal children.

"That is most excellent" Henry replied, causing Katherine to smile before he could say anything else, there was a knock at the door

"Enter" Henry said grudgingly, a page boy walked in

"Your Majesties, the Prince and Princess have arrived" the page boy said nervously

Katherine jumped out of her chair, eager to see them, Henry held back a chuckle at the sight of his wife, it was times like these when she was the most happiest that he remembered the young girl he had fallen in love with.

Lady Salisbury walked in with Mary and Edward behind her.

"Your Majesties" she bowed, Mary and Edward followed her example.

"You may leave us, Lady Salisbury" Katherine said kindly

When Lady Salisbury closed the door behind her, the formalities were long forgotten

"Mama" Mary and Edward said running into her arms, Katherine scooped them up,

"My darlings, I have missed you terribly" Katherine said, hugging them as tight as she could.

They quickly jumped from one parent to the other

"I missed you papa" Edward said

"I missed you more" Mary replied, holding onto him tightly

"I've missed both of you" Henry replied smiling, he really had missed both his children, they both had there own household at Greenwich palace and although he tried to see them as often as possible, it simply wasn't enough.

They both seemed to be growing by the day, although they were only six and five years old, Henry could see their whole lives flashing before his eyes.

"Papa are you alright" Mary asked, looking worried

"Of course I am, I was just thinking about tonight's celebrations" Henry laughed

"Your Papa has gone to a lot of trouble for you two" said Katherine smiling, "I wouldn't be surprised if he has emptied the whole treasury"

"You haven't? Have you" Mary asked worried

"Of course he hasn't" Edward said

"And why wouldn't I" Henry chuckled, "you two are more then worth it" both Children looked alarmed

"Your Papa is just joking" Katherine laughed, hugging Henry

"Well, are we going to stand around here all day, or do you two want your gifts" Henry smirked

"Gifts!" both children said simultaneously

"The celebrations have not even begun" Katherine scolded gently

"Just one gift each then, and you can have the rest in the morning" Henry said to the delight of the children.

Henry left the room and returned with two small boxes. He handed one to both children

"It is from your mother and me" Henry said proudly, hugging Katherine close to him, as the children opened their gifts.

Mary took out a pearl necklace with jewels around it

"It is beautiful" she breathed in awe

"I thought it was fitting" Henry laughed, "a Pearl necklace for my Pearl", he lifted Mary up on his hip and she rested her head on the crook of his neck

Edward took out a gold dagger with a jeweled hilt

"It's amazing" he said mesmerized "it looks just like yours Papa" the delight in Henry's face was obvious as he watched his family sitting around, telling stories and generally having fun, but as he watched his son playing with the dagger, the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach returned, and Henry couldn't help but wonder what his eldest son was doing.

The festivities had already begun at Court and celebrations were in full swing. There was only one person not enjoying the night and that person was Mary Boleyn.

Mary had been forced by her father to attend, since the celebrations were in honor of the royal children it would be deemed an insult if she did not appear.

"Why are you in such a mood?" said a voice next to Mary, Mary turned her head to look at her younger sister, Mary was often jealous of Anne, although Anne was not exceedingly beautiful in Mary's opinion, what she lacked in looks, she made up for in wit.

Anne would never have been treated in such a manner, Mary though, her sister was too strong willed to be used by any man, King or not.

"I am not in a mood" Mary said, she had not told anyone, what the King had said to her or what the physician had said. Not even Anne whom she told every detail about her life.

"Then why are you glaring at the Queen" Anne chuckled. Mary looked over at the royal family, Henry was holding Katherine's hand, with Mary on his lap and Edward sitting next to him, looking like he had no care in the world.

She had never seen him smile like that at her, or look at her so tenderly, her broken heart was beginning to hate Henry and his perfect family, oh what would he do if his precious children found out about his infidelities, Mary though. It was an unspoken rule to never speak of the King's mistresses in front or near his children.

"I am not glaring at anyone" Mary said tight lipped. Anne looked at her worriedly

"Mary what is the matter" Anne asked putting her hands on her hips.

Mary was not planning to tell anyone, she had not even informed the King but seeing Henry so happy without her broke her heart and she needed to tell someone, someone who would not judge her or scold her for what had happened.

Mary nodded at the entrance, and Anne understanding started to walk out the room, they did not stop until they reached their apartments.

"What is the matter, you can tell me anything, Mary" Anne said reassuringly. Mary stared at he younger sister, unsure of how to say it; she decided to just come out with it.

"I am with child and it is the King's" Mary blurted

Not sure if I should continue it or not

So what do you think?


	2. trouble brewing

It had only been a week since Edward and Mary had come to court but the royal family had settled into a comfortable routine. Henry would go about running the country, Katherine would teach the children all the things her mother had taught her and Sir Thomas More would handle the rest of the children's study, and any free time would be spent together.

Currently Henry was in the gardens with Mary and Edward; they were in the middle of a game, which consisted of Mary and Edward running off to hide whilst Henry searched for them, a game he had indulged in numerous times as a child.

Henry could clearly see Mary's shoes sticking out behind a tree and silently walked over, even as a grown man Henry did not like to lose.

Henry jumped out in front of the tree and to his surprise, Mary's shoes were there but Mary was nowhere in sight as Henry picked up the shoes, he heard giggling behind him and turned around to spot Mary running barefooted across the grass.

Henry couldn't help the laugh that escaped out of him at his daughters cleverness, and chased after her, determined not be outsmarted by a six year old.

He caught up with her just as she reached the palace steps and lifted her up.

"I win" Mary giggled in her father's arms, burying her head in the crook of his neck

"You do not" Henry pouted playfully, "I caught you just before you reached the steps"

"No you didn't" Mary supplied stubbornly

"Yes, I did" Henry chuckled acting like a two year old.

"Actually, I win" Said a voice they both recognised, Edward was standing at the top of the stairs, arms folded across his chest

Both Henry and Mary looked at each other baffled, how had they not noticed him before, then they pouted at the fact neither of them had the won the game, it amazed Edward how alike his father and sister were.

"Can we play again?" Edward asked

"Yes, please Papa" Mary pleaded, Henry looked up at the palace, he still had work to do before the day was done and Edward and Mary should have been with their tutor already, but one look at the pleading faces of his children and he had made up his mind.

"Just one more, then" Henry beamed, he could take the time for one more game, after all he was the King of England.

"You must tell him" Anne said stubbornly, hands on her hips staring down at her older sister. Although Anne Boleyn was the younger of the two Boleyn girls, she was far more mature then her elder sister.

"I do not have to do anything that I do not wish to do" Mary said stubbornly, sitting down on the bed.

"But-"

"It is my child, Anne, I shall decide what to do with it," Mary said cutting off Anne.

"It is also the King's child" Anne said stubbornly. When Mary had first told her of her predicament she had believed that Mary would think reasonably for once in her life, Mary had of course done the opposite and decided to not inform the King of his own child.

"Which makes it a bastard child" Mary said hotly, "you know how bastards are treated Anne".

"The King may claim the child, like he did Fitzroy" Anne said, Mary just folded her arms across her chest. "Will you at least tell father?" Anne said exasperated

"NO" Mary all but shrieked. Tell father, had Anne gone mad, Thomas Boleyn had been a kind father in the past, when Mary was a little girl, but as she grew older her father had changed, he used his children as pawns. When Mary and Anne were in France he had convinced Mary to bed King Francis and every other man at court, and he had convinced her to do the same to King Henry. Mary blamed her father believing it was his fault that she was in this condition in the first place

"Then what do you plan to do when you start showing, or when the child comes. Papa will not let you leave court" Anne said, sitting beside her sister.

"I do not know Anne" Mary said rapping her arms around her sister. "What am I to do Anne?"

"Tell the King" Anne said gently, "you have seen how he is with his own children; he is not the type of man to turn away his own child"

"But those children are legitimate" Mary said quietly.

"But Fitzroy is not" Anne said confidently "and although he may not be at court, the King still provides for him"

"I will consider it" Mary said putting an end to the conversation.

Both unaware, that there was someone outside the door listening in on their conversation.

Edward Tudor always walked when he was court, 'Prince's do not run around' Lady Salisbury had told him on numerous occasions and for the first time in his short life, Edward ignored Lady Salisbury's teachings and ran as fast as he could.

He had a break from his studies, whilst Mary had gone to find their parents; Edward had hid from his governess and had chosen to go on walk about. He had somehow ended up near the apartments of his mother's ladies in waiting and he had overheard something he wished he could forget.

Edward kept running ignoring everyone who got in his way, he slammed open the door to his apartment, ignored the page at the door, ran into his room and jumped on his bed, praying that no one would notice his absence.

He must have heard wrong, or Mary Boleyn was a liar, it had to be one or the other. His father was a king, _the_ king Henry the eight, he wouldn't keep a mistresses, he just wouldn't it wasn't like him, he promised he wouldn't, thought Edward remembering what had happened a little over a year ago.

It was just before his fourth birthday and Edward had found out about Henry Fitzroy, he had never met his brother, until then he hadn't even known he had one. His father had tried to explain about mistresses and bastard children and how although Henry Fitzroy had been claimed he could not live at court or at Ludlow castle with him and Mary. To make him feel better Henry had promised he would not keep a mistress although Henry had only said it to calm his son, it had meant the world to Edward, he didn't like the idea of mistress's or having siblings he'd never even met.

There was a knock at the bedroom door, Edward just put one of his many pillows on his head and said "go away"

"Is that anyway to speak to your mother" Katherine said entering the room and closing the door behind her.

"Please go away" Edward amended. Katherine just sat on the bed and removed the pillow from his head.

"What on earth has got you so upset Edward" Katherine asked.

"Nothing" Edward said stubbornly, if Mary Boleyn hadn't even told his papa about the unborn child, then it was very unlikely that his mama knew and he couldn't tell her if that was the case.

"Well, if nothing is bothering you, why do you look so upset" Katherine continued, **stubbornness **was a family trait.

"I can't tell you" Edward replied

"And why not?" Katherine asked. Edward remained silent. "Come here Edward" Katherine said gently, scooping her five year old son on her lap, she tilted his chin up so that he would look at her.

"You can tell me anything, Edward, especially if it has you in such a state" Katherine said. Edward bit his lip

"It's not my place to tell" He said quietly, under Katherine's gaze he continued, "I overheard something I shouldn't have and I don't think I should repeat it"

"I am your mother" Katherine said, Edward knew it was a command to tell her.

But he couldn't, so for the first time in his life Edward lied to his mother

"I over heard that we were going back to Ludlow castle soon, I don't want to leave so soon" Edward said quietly. Unable to look at his mother

"Is that all" Katherine sighed, "Edward as the future King, you can not get so upset about such trivial things, your father and I would like nothing more then for you and Mary to live at Court with us, but Court is no place for young children, you must understand that Edward"

"Yes, mama" Edward replied quickly, thankful that his mother believed the lie.

"Now lets go find Lady Salisbury, you need to clean up for dinner, your father has invited a few guests" Katherine said as she and Edward walked towards the nursery.

Unable to contain his curiosity, Edward asked "who are the guests"

"Just a few of your fathers diplomats and their families, like Sir Thomas Boleyn" Katherine said absentmindedly

Edward froze, if Thomas Boleyn was coming, then surely so was his daughter Jane.

"They can't come" Edward said

"Edward what has gotten into you today" Katherine asked entering the nursery

"Nothing" he replied

"The Boleyn's are a respected family at Court, and you will show them respect, is that understood" Katherine said crossly.

"Yes, your majesty" Edward said. As Lady Salisbury came over and his mother left, Dinner was going to be a disaster.

"But we can't go" Mary argued, the King had invited them to dinner, and her father was excited at the prospect of dining with the King.

"Don't be silly" Thomas Boleyn said, he had worried when Mary had lost the King's favour, but this was surely a sign that the King still had some feelings towards his eldest daughter. "Now you must remember not to attract the Kings attention in front of the Prince and Princess, but that does not mean you can not regain his favour, you just have to be subtle"

"I don't want to regain his favour" Mary said stubbornly. Thomas stopped his pacing and glared at his daughter. Did she not understand that she could make or break their family?

"She does not mean that" Said Lady Elizabeth, Mary's mother, trying to calm her husband down.

"of course she doesn't" said Sir Thomas going back to his pacing, "now I've bought you a new dress, that you must wear, is that understood"

Mary realising there was nothing she could do, nodded her head

"Speak child" Thomas said roughly

"Yes, Father" Mary said, and as Sir Thomas gave Anne and George their instructions for the night, Mary couldn't help but think that dinner was going to be a disaster.


	3. Secrets Unfold

Whitehall

January 2 – 1518

Princess Mary Tudor sat in the nursery, the royal nursery was an impressive one, filled to the brink with every book and toy, the royal children desired, and currently Mary was reading a book from Sir Thomas More, given to the children as a Christmas gift.

Mary looked over at her younger brother, by now Edward would normally have come over and bombard her with hundreds of questions about the book, Mary always acted as if it was a bother answering all his questions, but in truth she delighted in it.

He was different today, strange, doing nothing but staring out of the window. Mary could see Lady Salisbury frown and immediately knew what she was thinking, if Edward was still acting strange by dinner, Lady Salisbury would surely be blamed.

Mary slammed her book shut and walked over to Edward. If Lady Salisbury would not find out what was the matter, then she certainly would.

"get dressed" Mary said firmly, startling Edward

"what?" Edward said confused

"it's nearly time for dinner, get ready" Mary said firmly, she was wearing a new dress, a gift from her Papa.

"and what if I do not wish to go" Edward said crossing his arms.

Mary was taken aback by Edwards remark, Edward had almost always did as he was told and he had never refused Mary.

"Edward do as I tell you to and get ready" Mary scolded. She was the only person apart from their parents that could talk to Edward in such a way. Edward silently got up and went to get dressed

"Everything has been done for their comfort, your Majesty" answered Lady Salisbury, standing behind the royal children

"good" Smiled Henry, Lady Salisbury took that as her dismal and left the room

Mary followed her mother and father into the dining hall, it wasn't used often, just when there were a lot of people coming.

"who is attending dinner?" Mary asked curious

"just a few lords and diplomats and their families" Henry answered as they entered the dining hall. All the occupants stood up then bowed or curtsied and addressed them.

Mary took her seat next to Edward, across from her sat the duke of Suffolk, Sir Charles Brandon, and he had brought along his family, Mary's cousin Thomas, who was only a year older then her and his second wife, the Lady Elizabeth.

Dinner started off all right, but Mary soon noticed that Edwards attention was diverted, she followed his eyesight only to see two women fervently whispering, with a man she presumed to be their father looking on disapprovingly. They were both pretty, Mary thought, one had blonde hair down to her shoulder and she had obviously dressed to attract attention, although now she looked close to tears, the other was not your average pretty, she had black locks down to her shoulder, and there was something about her, something Mary could not quite figure out

"who are they?" she whispered to Edward

"the Boleyn family" he replied without taking his eyes off them, he didn't look angry or sad just curious like Mary. "she better calm down before she hurts herself" Mary immediately knew who he was referring to, the blonde headed Boleyn girl, who looked hysterical now.

"what are their names?" Mary asked

"the blonde one's called Mary, the other one is her sister Anne" Edward replied

"I wonder what she is so upset about?" Mary asked and then noticed Edwards guilty expression. "do you know?" she asked shocked

"of course not" Edward hissed defensively, putting a forkful of food into his mouth so he would be unable to answer any more questions.

"you do don't you?" Mary said aghast, why in God's name would her brother know what was bothering a women he had never even spoken to. As Mary diverted her attention back to the Boleyn girls she realized that her and Edward where not the only one's paying attention to them. Everyone except their Papa and Sir Charles who where in the middle of a conversation where outright staring at the spectacle. Mary Boleyn now had tears going down her face and the man she had presumed to be their father looked thunderous. Mary Boleyn suddenly stood up getting everyone's attention

"I am truly sorry your Majesties" she curtsied "but I must be excused" she ran out of the room without waiting for permission. Thomas Boleyn spent the rest of the night apologizing for his daughters behavior, and Mary promised herself that she would find out exactly what Edward knew.

"Now do not do anything rash" Lady Elizabeth Boleyn told her husband as they walked towards Mary's chamber with Anne and George walking behind them

"Rash" Sir Thomas said through his gritted teeth, "that girl will be lucky if I do not ask the King to lock her up in the dungeons and throw away the key"

"father, she told you that she did not want to attend dinner" Anne said, if anyone was to blame for all this it was Thomas Boleyn.

"she will do as she is told and like it" Sir Thomas replied entering Mary's chambers. "how dare you humiliate us in such a way" he said stalking up to Mary

Anne quickly got in between them, "you must calm down father, it was not Mary's fault". George moved to stand next to Anne, if his sister could stand up to her father then so could he.

"not her fault, after that spectacle, we shall be lucky if the King does not think our entire family insane" Sir Thomas said, pacing the room now. "and you" he said turning on Anne "what where you two arguing about, making a spectacle of yourselves"

" I apologies for my behavior" Anne said not answering the question, she couldn't tell him even if she wanted to, they were arguing about Mary's unborn child, Mary had decided to tell the King but she was too afraid to do it herself and was trying to convince Anne to do it for her

"apologies, apologies" laughed Sir Thomas, "I don't need your apology, I need the Kings favor, which neither of you seem to be able to get" he roared

"Thomas" Elizabeth reprimanded

"it the truth" he roared, "God has forsaken me with two incompetent daughters, who's only goal it seems is to destroy this family"

Mary stepped forward and Anne recognized the look on her face, it was the look she had before she was about to do something she would regret.

"I can get the Kings favor if I wanted to" Mary said furious at being called useless

Thomas Boleyn laughed, "and how pray tell would do you go about it, you've ruined any chance of ever getting it back"

"I AM CARRYING THE KINGS CHILD" Mary shouted and regretted the words as soon as they had slipped out.

Thomas Boleyn stood frozen in shock, the Kings child, _the King child_, he tried to process the thought. He would become grandfather to the Kings bastard child, a smile slowly spread across his face as he thought about Henry Fitzroy, even as a bastard child he lived comfortably and would surely get more as he grew older, and Thomas could just imagine the rewards the Boleyn family would reap if Mary had a boy.

"I presume the King does not know" Thomas said exhilarated

"good, I'll discuss this new development with your uncle and then we shall discuss what shall be done" he said exiting the room.

King Henry walked the corridors of Whitehall towards his wife's chambers, the dinner had gone off without a hitch except for the trouble with Mary Boleyn, Henry wondered what was bothering her, he was so consumed in his thoughts that when he rounded the corner he bumped in to someone, causing them to hit the floor, hard.

"my apologies" Henry said quickly offering his hand

"pardon your Majesty, I should have been paying more attention" said the women as she took his hand and stood up.

"entirely my fault" Henry said with a smile, the women in front of him was certainly beautiful, why hadn't he noticed her before, "what is your name" he asked

"Anne, your Majesty" she said

"a beautiful name, for a beautiful women" Henry smirked

"Anne Boleyn, your Majesty" Anne added forcefully

'oh' thought Henry, no wonder he hadn't noticed her, other than Mary he had paid no attention to the Boleyn family.

"what is such a lovely lady doing wondering the corridors at night" Henry asked

"I assure your Majesty, that I can take care of myself" Anne said

"I am sure you could" Henry smirked, his interest in her growing stronger by the second

"good night your Majesty" Anne smiled

"good night, lady Anne" Henry said walking away. Unbeknown to Anne Boleyn she had just captured his attention.

**Next Day**

Mary and Edward walked around the garden, with Lady Salisbury and a few guards trailing behind them. Mary had been trying since late last night to get Edward to tell her what he knew and she was sure she was wearing him down.

"Mary?" Edward said sitting on the steps

"yes" she replied sitting next to him

"can you keep a secret?" he asked

She thought about it "No" she replied

"Mary" Edward whined

"I can't keep a secret, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't tell me whatever it is your keeping from everyone" he was silent, "you know you're going to tell me anyway" she said, getting up.

Edward followed her round the garden

"but what if what I told you was bad, like really bad?" Edward asked

"just tell me" Mary said exasperated

"we are going to have another brother or sister" Edward murmured quickly, looking at his feet

"Mama is with child" Mary said excited, rolling on the balls of her feet at the thought of another sibling.

"no, no" Edward said quickly

"but you just said-"

"that we would have a brother or sister, I never stated its parentage" Edward said quickly

"who?"asked Mary, catching on quickly, so their papa had taken on a mistress and she had ended up with child

"Mary Boleyn" Edward said quickly

"does papa know?" Mary asked

"I'm not sure, you won't tell him will you?" he asked

"of course I am going to tell him, Edward do you think the Boleyn harlot will keep quiet, we have to tell papa before she does" Mary said running towards the steps

"but why?" Edward asked chasing after, with Lady Salisbury trying to keep up behind him

"because we just have to" Mary said running into her Papa's study. That was the most idiotic excuse Edward had ever heard, as he entered the study he realized that they had lost Lady Salisbury.

Their papa was alone in his study.

King Henry looked up as his daughter barged into his study.

"your Majesty" Mary curtsied

"and how are you today, Mary" Henry asked smiling, as Mary walked over to his desk, "and you've dragged your brother along with you" Henry laughed as Edward entered the study. "where's Lady Salisbury"

"err, she must be on her way" Edward mumbled, "she's not as quick as us"

"so what can I do for the two of you" Henry asked as he picked up Mary and put her on his knee

"we don't want a brother or sister" Mary blurted

"what" Henry laughed "you're not getting one"

"yes we are" Mary said, puzzling Henry. "Mary Boleyn is with child, your child"

Henry froze, "Mary have you gone mad" he asked

"it's true" Edward said " I heard her, she is with child"

Henry tensed unwilling to show his anger to his children, he wasn't angry that Mary was with child he was angry at the fact that he seemed to be the last person to find out.

"leave. Now" Henry said through his gritted teeth, Mary jumped off and followed Edward out the door. Before Henry could summon Mary Boleyn the page boy entered

"what" Henry barked

"the Lady Anne Boleyn" wishes to speak to your Majesty" said the boy

"let her in" Henry ordered "and summon the Lady Mary Boleyn"

Anne entered, "your Majesty" she curtsied, if Henry couldn't take his anger out on Mary, Anne was a good enough substitute

"how long have you known?" He barked, Mary Boleyn wasn't the type to keep secrets, her sister would surely know.

"Pardon-"

"how long have you known that your sister was with child, my child" Henry barked

"she was planning to tell your Majesty" Anne said quickly, how had he found out.

"liar" Henry seethed, "you are as bad as your sister, a family of liars"

"how dare you, my sister is no liar and neither am I, your _Majesty_" Anne said barely adding in your Majesty.

"this is all her fault" he seethed

"her fault, its takes two to make a child your Majesty" she said acidly

"not the child, women, the fact that everyone from here to Spain knows about it" he roared, he took a deep breath trying to calm down, Henry wasn't the type to yell at women, there was just something about Anne Boleyn that made him tick.

"are you sure the child is mine" He asked, there was every chance that Mary Boleyn could have bedded other men.

Anne. rage consuming her lashed out, "_you might bed the first thing you see, your Majesty but my sister is no harlot, you have been her only lover, the child is most definitely yours, although I pray to God it wasn't. you, your Majesty are a despicable man and I pity the child Mary carries_"

And with that Anne stormed out of the room, Henry furious picked up the closest thing and hurled it at the wall. He was the King of England and nobody talked to him like that.

o.k. so not a very good start between Anne and Henry but this is an ANNE/HENRY story

so things will turn around for them, maybe? Lol

the whole baby thing should be sorted by the next chapter and there will definitely be a lot more of Anne and Henry.

I had to change the name of Charles son for my own sanity, there are just far too many Henrys around and Henry Fitzroy shall make an appearance soon, and for those of you who have written to tell me his nickname was HAL not HARRY I know, it will all be explained in upcoming chapters.

That is all thanks for reading


	4. Lies

Whitehall

January 3-1518

Henry the eight paced his study furious; he couldn't contemplate what had happened. How dare she speak to him like that, she was nothing more then a silly little girl, who knew nothing about the affairs of Kings.

He should have her sent to the tower or worse, he speculated, but there was something stopping him, if it was anyone else he would have had front row seats to their execution but Anne was different,

A knock at the door brought Henry out of his musings

"The Lady Mary Boleyn, to see your Majesty" said the page boy.

"Let her in" Henry said, glad that there was someone he could take his frustrations out on.

As Mary entered the room, Henry sat behind his desk, ignoring her; pretending to read a parchment. Mary stood in front of his desk unsure whether to take a seat or say something.

"Surely, you'll take a seat, we can't let a woman in your condition stand for so long now, can we" Henry said, his voice dripping of sarcasm.

"Thank you, your Majesty" Mary murmured. Then finding the courage to speak continued on. "As your Majesty, already knows I am with child, your Majesty's child-" Anne had rushed over to tell her what had happened.

"And what are we suppose to do about it" Henry said interrupting her

"Pardon, your Majesty, but I do not know what to do, will you claim this child as your own?" Mary asked. She had no idea, how you dealt with situations like these.

Henry frowned, what use would it be to claim the child, when he had claimed Fitzroy, he had had no other son, England had no heir, heck, he didn't even have any other children.

Things were different now, he had three children and England had an heir, what was the use of another bastard child.

"I will not claim the child" Henry said, noticing the look on Mary's face, he continued, "what use would it be, it would cause nothing but despair for those close to me" Henry said, his mind wondering to Katherine, what would she say, how deeply would she be hurt.

Of course Katherine already knew that Mary was his mistress, but the topic of children was sensitive to Katherine, they had not been able to conceive since Edward, and the news that Henry would have another child by a different woman, would surely devastate her.

Katherine would never outright yell at him or even be angry, but she would be hurt. Henry imagined looking into her eyes and seeing her accusations, his betrayal, every time he was with her.

Could he handle that, no he couldn't but what could he do.

"So you will abandon your child" Mary said speaking out, holding her stomach

Henry scowled down at her, "Do not forget who you speak to, and do not act like I am the first man to do so" He said, but he did feel guilty, there had to be something he could do.

"Excuse my boldness, your Majesty" Mary apologised, and then a thought occurred to her, "what shall I tell Sir William?" she asked suddenly worried

'Sir, William', Henry wondered trying to remember who the man was, and as he did so, he wanted to jump for joy; God had provided him with a way out.

"Your future husband" Henry said suddenly filled with joy

"Ye..Yes" Mary stuttered

"How many people know that you are with child?" Henry asked quickly

"Just my immediate family" Mary replied quickly, unsure of where this was going

"And of course Sir William doesn't know" Henry said excited

"No, he doesn't know" Mary said confused

"Good let's keep it that way" Henry smirked, as long as no one said anything, Katherine would never have to know, "how far along are you?" he asked

"A few weeks" Mary answered

'A few weeks', Henry thought, surely that didn't matter, children arrived early all the time, no one would think anything of it.

"You will marry, Sir William this week, is that understood" Henry said, the sooner they married, the sooner they could consummate their marriage

Mary was clearly shocked

"wh...Why?" she asked baffled

"So that you may bed him, and make him believe that the child is actually his" Henry said frustrated. "No one shall know that you are carrying my child, you shall tell your family that if they reveal the child's true parentage, they will become acquainted with the tower" Henry threatened, Mary nodded, "I will deal with Sir William" Henry continued, "you just be ready to become a married women", it was clearly a dismissal, Mary stood up stunned and walked towards her chambers.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

It was late when Henry found himself walking towards the royal nursery. He had dealt with Sir William, he and Mary would be married by the end of the week, if things went according to plan, nobody would ever know that the child she carried was actually his.

As Henry entered the nursery, he saw that both the royal Highness's were wide awake, with Mary sitting at a table reading a book and Edward lying on the floor, playing with toy horses and soldiers.

Henry quickly dismissed the attendants and went to sit by Mary, it seemed that both of them were ignoring him, what was it with the lack of respect theses days, did everyone just keep forgetting that he was the King. First that ridiculous girl, now his own children, something had to be done.

"Must be an interesting book" Henry said, gently grabbing the book out of Mary's hands

"It's written in French" Mary said obviously pleased with herself, looking down at her brother, she added, "Edward missed his tutoring session today"

Edward froze and looked up at his sister incredulous.

Henry frowned, why had he not been informed of this

"It's not my fault" Edward defended himself, "Sir Robert, was going to teach us French, I hate French, I'm not any good at it"

"That's no excuse to miss a session" Henry reprimanded gently "French is a very important language, one you will need in the future, understood"

"Yes Sir" Edward said glaring at Mary; he was going to get her back someway.

Looking at his children, Henry made up his mind about his next course of action.

"So" said Henry, "you'll be glad to know that you're not getting another brother or sister"

Both Mary and Edwards heads snapped up at him

"What do you mean?" asked Edward coming to stand by Henry

"You heard wrong" Henry said, lifting Edward on his lap

"No I didn't" Edward said, he was sure of what he had heard, but one look at his fathers face, had him back tracking. "I guess I could have misheard" he lied

"So Mary Boleyn is not with child?" Mary asked confused

"She is" said Henry "but the babe belongs to Sir William Carey, not I" Henry lied

Mary and Edward looked at each other, not knowing what to believe

It was an hour later when Henry walked out of the nursery confident that his children believed him.

He was certainly going to miss them, when they left at the end of the week

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Exhausted he walked into his wife's chambers, and dismissed the ladies in attendance. Henry dropped into one of the chairs, poured himself a drink and downed it in one, warm arms rapped around his shoulders

"Tough day?" Katherine asked

"Exhausting" Henry replied, downing another drink, manoeuvring Katherine around, and placing her in his lap, even after so many years of marriage, he still found her intoxicating.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Katherine asked, running her fingers through his hair

"No" Henry sighed, holding her closer

"Well what do you want to do?" Katherine asked, squirming in his lap, obviously exasperated with his behaviour.

"I can think of something" Henry smirked up at her

"What?.....Oh!" Katherine said smiling

"Come on" Henry chuckled, lifting her up and walking towards the bedroom.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

'_You,_ _Your Majesty are a despicable man' _

'_I pity the child Mary carries_

The words kept running through his mind. Henry looked up at the window, it was still dark outside, and Katherine was still asleep on his chest, but Henry couldn't sleep, the words of that stupid girl kept running through his head.

He wasn't any of the things she described him as, and even if he was, she wasn't suppose to say such things to him.

Henry rolled over, adjusting his pillow, trying to get back to sleep. Why couldn't he get her out of his mind, she was like every other girl at court, sure she was pretty, no not pretty, Henry amended, beautiful.

Frustrated, Henry got out of bed, got dressed and walked into the adjoining sitting room, dismissing the attendants, he sat down on one of the many chairs in the room.

He needed to get Anne Boleyn out of his mind, every time he thought of that girl, he just wanted to throttle someone, but there was nothing he could do at this hour, exhausted, Henry's eyes fell on one of the drawers in the room.

Slowly he stood up and walked towards it, he didn't understand what he was doing, his poor mind must have snapped, Henry thought, as he opened the drawer, removed the crinkly paper, moved back to the table and placed them in front of him.

They were letters from Bessie Blount, letters about his son, the same letters he had always thrown away. Katherine always tried to secretly save them. She always thought he might want to read them, some day.

Who thought someday, would be today, Henry mused, as he looked through the letters, some, where from years ago and others as recent as last week.

He looked over the letters for hours, Bessie always wrote a descriptive account of young Fitzroy's life in every letter, from what he did in the mornings till he was asleep at night.

The letters had done the trick; they had gotten his mind off one Anne Boleyn.

"What are you doing?" asked a quiet voice; Henry turned around, and spotted Katherine, walking towards him, still half asleep.

"Reading" Henry replied, getting up and stowing the letters away. "Time to go back to bed" He said, following Katherine into the bedroom, hoping that Anne Boleyn would not invade his mind.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

**Whitehall-January 6-1518**

It had been three days since Henry had sorted out the baby issues, Mary and William Carey would be married on January 9. If everything went according to plan, nobody would know about the child's true parentage.

Henry walked the corridors of Whitehall, in search of one Lady Anne Boleyn. For the past three days, Anne had haunted Henry's dreams, and not just his dreams. Anne Boleyn had invaded his mind, like some enchantress, she had bewitched him, everywhere he looked all he saw was her.

He had finally reached her chambers and knocked on the door. He didn't have to wait long before Anne opened the door.

Surprised, she hastily curtsied "Your Majesty" she said quickly, Henry stared at her, the women who had unknowingly pre-occupied his mind for three days straight.

"You owe me an apology" Henry said walking into the room uninvited.

"I apologise for whatever it is that I have done" Anne said, her mouth set in a hard line, and her brow creased.

Henry glared at her that was not what he would call an apology. Before he could berate her, he noticed the empty drawers in the room.

"Don't you have any clothes" He asked confused,

"Of course I do, can you open your mouth without insulting anyone!"She asked, under his cold glare she added "Your Majesty, forgive me for my boldness, I am just tired from packing"

He looked at her surprised

"Packing?" he asked

"Where going back to Hever castle, mother needs a break from court; she and I shall leave after Mary's wedding...... I have the permission of her Majesty" Anne added, seeing Henry's expression.

Henry tried to force down the panic he felt, why did this women affect him so much.

"When will you return?" Henry asked; Anne seemed hesitant to answer.

"I am not sure" Anne said, "I need to get away from court as much as my mother does...perhaps I'll never return" she chuckled

'Never' the words kept repeating in Henry's mind

"Why wouldn't you" he asked, Anne looked him up and down, as if sizing him up.

"I believe I've seen all I needed to see of what courts like, it has nothing else to offer me" she said, and strangely enough Henry felt wounded, as if she was outright rejecting him.

"I am quite tired, Your Majesty" Anne said, and Henry knew it was a dismissal, too shocked to say anything, Henry walked out of the room. No one had dismissed him since he had been named heir to the throne, and strangely enough, he enjoyed the feeling.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Henry the eight bitterly ate his food, as he sat across from Katherine who thankfully was eating in silence, Henrys mind was too consumed with thoughts of Anne Boleyn, and the idea of never seeing her again, frightened him.

"Do you know an Anne Boleyn?" Katherine suddenly asked

Henry nearly choked on his bite of meat.

"Barely" he sputtered out.

"She's one of my ladies, quite gifted for one so young" Katherine said

"So you like her?" Henry asked, wondering where Katherine was going with the conversation

"Yes, I like her, but she has sadly decided to leave court" Katherine said mournfully.

"Oh" said Henry trying to act surprised

"She wouldn't even let me try to find her a decent husband" Katherine said

"Are you going anywhere with this?" Henry snapped, the thought of Anne with a husband angering him

Katherine was obviously taken aback by his tone

"well" she said obviously angry, "Edward has been struggling with his French, and that is obviously unacceptable, England can not have a King who cant speak French, he'll be a laughing stock among the royal courts, and Lady Anne is perfectly fluent in French, if we place her in Edward and Mary's household, I am sure that she can persuade him better then those tutors of his"

"Many people speak French" Henry said, the thought of Anne far off at Ludlow castle, wasn't a nice one.

"I do not trust many people" Katherine shot back

"You trust that girl" Henry said surprised

"She is a clever young women, a good role model for both Mary and Edward"

"But is it not cruel, sending her off to Ludlow, so far from her family" Henry said, Katherine paused, "what is it" he asked

"I was thinking, that Mary and Edward should move to Windsor Castle, I miss them far too much when they are at Ludlow, we shall be able to see more of them if they do move to Windsor" Katherine said hastily, trying to convince him.

'Windsor castle' Henry mused, if he did agree, he would surely see more of Anne, Windsor castle was certainly closer then Hever, and with Mary and Edward he had the perfect excuse for dropping by.

"Very well" Henry said, shocking Katherine, "Windsor castle it is"

**~THE~QUEEN~**

**If you review, you'll get a teaser of the next chapter!**


	5. startling turn

**Sorry, this took longer then expected, I've had exams for the past two weeks and their slowly killing me and I still have a handful to do, thank goodness it's the weekend, until my exams finish I'm sorry to say that updates will be slower then usual, although I'll try my best to get them out quickly. Thank you to every one who reads and reviews this story you're the best! **

**And I can not wait for the last season of the Tudors to start in the U.K, I am really looking forward to seeing Katherine Parr, she's always seemed quite interesting to me.**

**Whitehall Palace**

**February 12 1519**

"no" King Henry said for what seemed like the hundredth time, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey inwardly groaned and put the sheet of paper he had into the bottom of the large stack of papers in front of him.

Silently Wolsey picked up the sheet on top of his stack and read the name on it.

"How about Prince Henry ii Duke of Orleans and second son of his Majesty King Francis I and Queen Claude-"

"No" Henry cut him off before he could finish

If it was anybody else Cardinal Wolsey would have tossed them out screaming.

"Your Majesty" Wolsey said calmly, "our search may become easier if you told me exactly the type of husband you want for Princess Mary" said Cardinal Wolsey, they had spent the past hour looking over suitable Princes Mary could be betrothed to. When they had started Wolsey had believed it would be easy to select a Prince, but the King had become exceedingly picky over their choices.

"she will not be betrothed to a second son" Henry said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "an heir to the throne is what I want, Mary will become a Queen not a duchess" he said slamming his fist on the table, he would be damned if he let his daughter be ranked underneath another women.

"My apologies your Majesty, I should have realised that" Wolsey said quickly, hoping to calm him down. "In that case your Majesty, how about the Dauphin Francis III Duke of Brittany and Dauphin of Viennois, first born son of King Francis and Queen Claude, heir to the throne of France"

A small frown marred Henry's face, it was a suitable match the Dauphin was only two years older then Mary, so she would not have to leave home until she was much older, and King Francis would surely accept Mary's dowry, however Katherine would not be happy, France and Spain where currently at war, and Katherine would surely argue that Philip ii the heir to the throne of Spain would be a better match, however Philip ii was not only five years older then Mary, he was already betrothed to Maria Manuela, Princess of Portugal, and Henry would not sit around and wait for the betrothal to fall apart. Katherine would just have to accept that Mary would be joining the French royal family.

"Shall I start the procedure Your Majesty" Wolsey asked

"Very well" said Henry walking out of the room towards Katherine's chamber

**~THE~QUEEN~**

"The Dauphin" Katherine said through gritted teeth, "is there no other suitor"

"Plenty" Henry said, "however there are no better suitors"

Katherine heaved a sigh

"Very well" she said sitting down, although she looked docile, Henry knew she was furious, Katherine harboured a dislike for the French and always would, her upbringing however meant she would never argue with Henry's decision.

"Good" Henry said dismissing the subject, "I am planning to go to Windsor Castle tomorrow" said Henry, knowing full well that Katherine would be unable to go with him

"I am sad to say that I cannot join you" Katherine said thinking nothing of it, "i planned to spend the day in church", it was her ritual to spend the thirteenth of every month in a church.

"We shall go together another time" Henry said smiling, tomorrow he would see Anne Boleyn, after over a month of being apart.

There was something he had to ask her.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

February 12 1519

Anne Boleyn hopped out the carriage staring up at Windsor castle, she couldn't believe she had agreed to this, well she knew she never really had a choice but still she wanted to believe she did. As she entered the entry hall, she took a calming breath, this wouldn't be like court, here she wouldn't see the face of that big headed King as often as she had to suffer at court, as she walked further down, Anne paid attention and realised that Lady Salisbury had been talking to her and the other ladies that would start working at Windsor. "their Highnesses Prince Edward and Princess Mary" Lady Salisbury announced, Anne had never properly looked at the royal children and as she looked into the eyes of Prince Edward, she wanted to yell out in anger, using words that would surely haven't gotten her into trouble as a child, for the prince had the exact same blue eyes as the King, the very same one's she couldn't get out of her head.

Berating herself for her wayward thoughts, Anne curtsied and scurried out with the rest of the Ladies. Windsor was certainly a beautiful castle; she would have loved to have grown up in such a place

"So what is your name?" asked one of the ladies in waiting as Anne settled on her bed.

"Anne" Anne answered, "Anne Boleyn"

"So why are you here?" asked another lady

Anne frowned at her, what was with all the questions

"Ignore them" said another lady, sitting down on Anne's bed. As the ladies scurried away, the one sitting on Anne's bed extended her hand, "I'm Jane Parker" she said smugly

Anne shook her hand

"Don't mind them" said Jane, "their just being nosy"

"Nosy?" Anne asked,

Jane Parker moved closer to Anne and whispered "well, although I'm not one to gossip, I'll make an exception, just for you"

'_Not one to gossip, yeah right'_ thought Anne

"so, the word is that his Majesty, asked Lady Salisbury to keep an eye on you, and that it was he who asked for you to be put in this household" she said triumphantly,

Anne stared at her dumb struck; the King hated her why on earth would he want her at Windsor

"That's not possible" Anne said getting up and starting to unpack.

"Are you sure?" asked Jane, critically looking at Anne's clothes, they where mostly of the French fashion

"Yes" Anne said in a way that put an end to the conversation

"We better go it's almost time to eat" Jane said hopping off of Anne's bed

"Do we all eat together?" Anne asked surprised, back at court everyone ate whenever they wanted to.

"their highnesses follow a strict timetable, its the Kings orders that they must eat at the same time everyday, and Lady Salisbury deemed that it would be easier for the rest of the house to eat when they eat, so yes, unless your suppose to be attending to their Highnesses you must eat with everyone else" said Jane, by now they where out of the room and in a small dining room filled with the castle's attendants.

Suddenly Lady Salisbury charged into the room looking fazed, "there is no time to eat" she said, as if the occupants in the room had gone mad, "we have just heard that his Majesty will arrive tomorrow, we must get to work" she said barging out of the room.

"Work?" Anne asked, "What type of work"

"Not for us" Jane said, taking a seat and snagging a piece of bread

"For the cleaners and the cooks and everyone else" she said, as Anne took her seat

"but the castle is clean" Anne said and from what she could see of the large spread in front of her, no one was going to go hungry any time soon.

"True, but if the King sees even a spec of dirt, and one of the children fall ill who do you think he will blame".

"But surely their is every chance they will become ill when they go into town or play in the village" Anne said

"They do not leave the castle" Jane said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "and the only people they play with is each other" she said putting the last piece of bread in her mouth

"Surely they go out?" Anne asked shocked

"Nope" Jane said popping the p "well they do go out into the garden, but their watched whilst their out there, you now to make sure they don't jump into the pond or scrape their knee"

Anne looked at her shocked, no matter how beautiful Windsor castle was Anne would have hated to be trapped in it.

It was sometime later Anne crawled into bed, completely forgetting about the Kings arrival

**~THE~QUEEN~**

**February 13 1519**

"He is as handsome as they say" squealed Lady Jane parker

It was mid afternoon and the King had arrived bright and early, the whole castle had to wait for him in the entry hall, and Anne was proud that she kept her eyes on the floor instead of on him. He had soon retreated into one of the many play rooms with their highnesses.

"He is average" Anne argued

"Average" squeaked Jane as if she had just been insulted, "their is nothing average about him he is devilishly handsome"

Anne inwardly groaned, she was sick of hearing about Henry over and over again, but before she could say anything Lady Salisbury barged into the room.

She quickly walked over to Anne and said "Lady Anne, his Majesty wishes to see you, he is waiting for you in the garden".

Anne ignored the stares and walked down towards the garden and just as Lady Salisbury had said King Henry was waiting.

He spotted her immediately; "Your Majesty" Anne curtsied

"Lady Anne, I'm glad you where able to come" he said nervously

Anne looked on in a stupor; she had seen the King act arrogant and confident but never nervous.

"Pray tell your Majesty, what is this about?" Anne asked

"Take a walk with me, Lady Anne, I must ask you something" he said, Anne agreed and fell into step with him as they walked around the large garden.

"This might come as a shock to you" he said nervously, "but I have a confession"

"A confession?" Anne asked, averting his ocean blue eyes, no matter what she had said it was true, King Henry was devilishly handsome and his eyes seemed to be her weakness.

"Yes" said Henry, "I must confess that I can not seem to stop thinking about you"

Anne stopped walking and stared at him, her eyes wide and her jaw slack.

"There is no way to ask such a thing, so i will just come out and say it, will you become my mistress"

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Will she agree, what do you think!


	6. Problems

**~THE~QUEEN~**

**February 13 1519**

'**Mistress'** the word kept running through her head, had the King gone mad, she would have asked him if he were not her King

She started into his eyes and saw that he was perfectly serious; he wanted her to become his mistress, after everything that had happened with her family, how dare he ask her, how dare he put her in such a position, if he were not her King, she would have slapped him

Anne glared at him and the smile on Henry's face wavered

"NO" she said hotly, looking at him as if he were nothing more then a pauper, "I will never be your mistress" she said scathingly, "not now, not ever" and with that she turned and stalked back into the castle, fuming

Leaving a very surprised King behind her

**~THE~QUEEN~**

**February 16 1519**

"Why can't I go" whined Prince Edward

Lady Anne Boleyn and a number of the other ladies were dressing him, but it was the Lady Anne that answered him, he liked her more then all the others.

"Because the Dauphin and King Francis are here to see Princess Mary, your Highness not you" she answered warmly

The delegation from France would be visiting Whitehall and the Princess had been invited to meet her future husband and father in-law

"Will you stay with me?" Edward asked, sadly looking up at her, she really felt for the young Prince, although he was better off then most children in other ways he was not

"As long as you wish it" she said smiling at him

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Princess Mary sat next to her father in court, she was wearing a new dress her father had brought her cut in the French style, although she was only seven, she knew how important today was, today she would meet her future husband and if everything went well she would one day become a Queen, just like her mama and not just any Queen but the Queen of France.

The large oak doors suddenly opened and everyone froze

A loud voice suddenly announced, "The delegation from France has arrived" and as if on cue a number of men walked through the door in a two lines, and then a man that was surely the King walked in and right next to him was a small boy of nine, with short copper hair and emerald green eyes, he was dressed in the finest clothes, with a dagger covered in jewels resting on his hip

It was unusual for members of the royal family to accompany the delegates but it was not unheard of

The men and women in court began to bow low or curtsy; Mary stood when her mother did, high up on the dais and curtsied when the King and Dauphin reached them

Henry stood up

"Francis" he smiled, getting off the dais and walked towards the King of France, "it is truly a pleasure to have you here" he said

Francis shook his outstretched hand, "it is a pleasure to be here" he smiled, he took a step back and put a hand on the Dauphin's shoulders, the boy looked up at Henry, "this is my son and heir, Dauphin Francis iii"

Henry smiled and then bowed to the young boy, causing the members of the court to laugh, the Dauphin even smiled, "pleasure to meet you Francis" Henry turned behind him and held his arm out to Mary, "this" he said moving Mary in front of him, "is my daughter, Princess Mary" the Dauphin bowed low, causing Francis to beam, it was obviously something the boy had been told to do, "come" said Henry, "lets eat".

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Miles away from the happy family and the bored Prince Edward sat Elizabeth Blount, she had written countless times to his Majesty but had never received a reply until now.

The King had written back and she was overjoyed, the joy was sadly short lived, she had hoped the letter would be filled with apologies and the King would demand that Henry be brought to court and accepted as his son, that was sadly not the case, the letter contained no apology for the neglect of his eldest child but a bargain, Henry could come to court and live with the other royal children at Windsor, but Elizabeth would never be allowed to see her eldest child, he would be raised as if he was the Queens son, with all the luxury that came with being a Prince of England, but Henry would never be Prince and Elizabeth was unsure of what to do

If Henry did go to Windsor, how would he be treated, she had no doubt that the Queen would be fair and treat him no different then everyone else but she would never treat him as if he were her own child, Henry would lose the love of a mother and what about the rest of the household and the court, people at court would surely treat him as a bastard and so would the members of the household but what about the Prince and Princess, who knew who they would react, and then there was the big difference in up bringing, although the Tailboys were not rich all her children had received an education but Elizabeth wondered if it was as good as the royal children's, would Henry be able to hold his own against the two.

Then that led to questions of the future, what would become of Henry, Prince Edward would become King and if the rumours were true Princess Mary would become the next Queen of France, what about Henry, if Edward did not like him, then once King Henry passed life could certainly become difficult for her eldest but what if Edward liked him, what if Henry fit right in with the other children, then his life could be so different, he could become a Duke like the King had promised seven years ago, before the birth of his other children, and Elizabeth couldn't help the small feeling of resentment towards the royal children, if they had never been born then her Henry would certainly be next in line to the throne.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Mary was nervous as she stood in front of her mother and father, the members of the French delegation and the rest of court, with only a virginal in her hands, she had practised all week and she silently prayed that she would not get anything wrong

She started playing, as her father beamed at her, and once she finished the entire room, started applauding, she curtsied and took her seat next to her mother

"What did I say" Henry smiled to Francis, "you won't find a better player in all of England"

"She is truly talented" King Francis smiled, "and I am glad to say that we are taking a fine jewel from England", "I was hoping to meet the young Prince" Francis added

Henry beamed, "his highness is currently at Windsor, I don't like him to come to court too often, there are far too many people, and he could easily fall ill"

"Of course" Francis agreed, "I was also hoping to see Ladies Mary and Anne Boleyn, my wife was exceedingly fond of Anne"

Henry's features darkened but only Charles Brandon, who had recently been made a Duke noticed.

Henry had been surprised by Anne's refusal but it had only made her more desirable, he was certain that he could convince her to become his mistress, he would swear off all other women if she wished, just as long as he could have her.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Whilst the royal family were having fun at Whitehall, all hell had broken loose at Windsor.

Four hours ago

Anne sat in the main room, across from the young Prince with Lady Jane Parker and another one of the ladies, they were teaching him a card game.

"That's all you have to do, your Highness" smiled Lady Jane

Edward slowly nodded his head and started to play, and like always the ladies let him win, after a while, it was obvious that he was bored

"May I go outside?" he asked

"It's far too cold, your Highness" Lady Salisbury said, she had been standing at the edge of the room, quietly observing the Prince, it was one of the few days that Edward had off,

Edward nodded and quietly sat down

"Shall we play another game?" Anne asked, trying to get the boy to smile, Edward nodded his head

"I think I'll just go to bed" he said

"But it's the middle of the afternoon" Anne frowned

"If his Highness wishes to retire, then he can" said Lady Salisbury crossly, "come, your Highness, we shall wake you up when its time for dinner"

When it had reached the time for dinner, Anne had volunteered to go wake up his Highness

She passed by the guards at the door and entered the large room

She walked towards the large curtains and pulled them back, "I am surprised that you slept for so long, Your Highness" she said as she walked towards the bed

"Your Highness, it's time to wake up" she said to the sleeping boy, but nothing happened, Edward didn't even move, she slowly shook him, hoping to get a response but Edward was as silent as the dead

She shook him even harder, panic beginning to take over her

"Prince Edward" she said loudly, shaking him as hard as she could, then she saw his chest rising and breathed a sigh of relief, he wasn't dead but he wouldn't wake up

"Lady Salisbury!" she shrieked loud enough for the whole castle to hear, "Lady Salisbury!" she yelled running out of the room and towards were she hoped the Lady was

Lady Salisbury hearing her shrieks met her halfway

"What is it, child?" asked the women flustered

"you must come at once" Anne said grabbing the women and running back towards Edwards room, "its his Highness, I believe he is ill" the minute the word left her mouth, Lady Salisbury ran quicker then Anne could have believed

Doctor Linacre arrived shortly afterwards, and the whole castle was in disarray, nobody wanted to tell the King that his only son and heir was ill and could possibly die, they were all hoping Linacre would tell them that they had called him for nothing and that Edward would make a speedy recovery

"I am afraid" said Linacre, "that somebody must inform the King"

"How bad is it?" Lady Salisbury asked

"It is not likely that he will live through the night" Linacre said sadly

"for the love of God cure him" said Salisbury, "this country needs him" she said as she sent someone to go tell the King, no one could even imagine what the Kings reaction would be and Lady Salisbury had the feeling that he would kill the messenger

"Anne" she called, "you must inform the King at once, take one of the carriages" she told Anne Boleyn


	7. Death

**Thank you so much for all the kind reviews, they really put a smile on face, and I've decided that instead of randomly updating it would be better for everyone if I updated once a week, that way you don't have to wait forever for an update and it will just be easier on me! Again thank you so much, I absolutely love reviews; I think I'm addicted to them actually**

**February 19 1519**

News had spread like wildfire, far and wide, until every man, women and child in England and even Scotland had heard that Prince Edward of Wales had fallen ill

Doctor Linacre had been proven wrong, and Edward had lived through the night; in fact it had been three days, since his Highness had fallen ill, and although he was not dead, he was certainly near death

This news affected everyone in England, most prayed for his Highness's speedy recovery, whilst others prayed for his death, the one thing the two groups had in common was that with Edwards death all their lives would change, it was common knowledge that the Queen could not have anymore children, and with Edward's death, the English throne would be free to claim once his Majesty passed away, nobody would accept Mary as Queen, she was nothing but a girl, nobody wanted war to break out over the crown again, except those who would surely profit from it.

Elizabeth Blount had never wished ill on any child, but if his Highness did die, then surely her Henry would be made the next heir and she would not have to be separated from her child, her Henry would live a comfortable life as King, and as his mother, Elizabeth would surely be rewarded

Thomas Boleyn, was not a blind man, he had made a mistake with Mary but he would not do the same with Anne , he had spies at Windsor and he knew about the King's infatuation with Anne, he knew Anne bedding the King would be worthless, so he had come up with an elaborate plan, to make Anne the next Queen, but their was always one problem, Prince Edward, even if Anne somehow became Queen, Thomas would never be the grandfather of the next King of England and that had bothered him more then anything, but now, if Edward died all his dreams would come true, once Edward died, he would just have to convince Anne to do her part, he was sure that once he told her of his plans for her, she would do everything he said

Queen Katherine could not believe what was happening, it was as if her entire world had ended, her Edward, her little Prince was ill, it was her worst nightmare. Throughout her life she knew that she was destined to provide England with an heir, she had believed that she would have many sons, but God had only blessed her with one.

She knew how important Edward was more then anyone, she remembered her life before him, how her Mary, a Princess of England and granddaughter of the great Ferdinand and Isabella had to compete for attention against a bastard, it had broken her heart, and when Edward had come along it had all changed, her life was as she dreamed it to be, Mary was acknowledged as she should have been, she herself was treated like a Queen by those that had dared act superior to her, like the cardinal and Elizabeth and her bastard were sent away and now all that could end

it was late when Anne Boleyn had delivered the message that broke her heart, they where just retiring to bed, when she had barged in, Katherine had then been ordered by Henry to stay at Whitehall with Mary, and then Henry had run out of Whitehall, yelling orders at everybody, he had grabbed a horse, jumped on it and rode straight to Windsor

Katherine had run to the chapel in the castle and had prayed like she did all those years ago, for the first Prince of Wales she had ever met. Arthur, but back then her prayers had fallen on deaf ears, and Arthur had died. Katherine begged for her prayers to be heard now, Edward and Mary meant everything to her and she would gladly take her own life for theirs, she prayed to swap places with Edward

It was only an hour or two after Henry had left, that news that the plague had reached London had arrived, and as if it was prophesised, it had struck Whitehall, on the second day of Edwards's illness and like her son, Queen Katherine had fallen ill.

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Henry's world had come crashing down around him, as he stared at his son, Edward had still not awoken, and for three days, Henry had not moved from his place at Edwards's bedside

His heir, England's only Prince looked closed to death

Edward's skin was pale; his lips blue and his breathing laboured, the mere sight of it broke Henry's heart

Henry had wanted to blame somebody, anybody, and then when news had arrived in the evening, about Katherine and the plague, Henry knew exactly who to blame, himself.

He had had everything a King could wish for, a good Queen who he loved with all his heart, a Princess who he would gladly die for and a Prince of Wales, who would one day become the greatest King England had ever seen.

He had had everything and now he was close to losing it all

His first reaction was to blame the one that had started it all, Anne Boleyn, she was the reason God was punishing him, his infatuation with her, was the cause of it all

He had spent his time, thinking of suitable punishments for her but every time he thought of punishing the dark haired beauty his heart ached, and he realised that he couldn't harm her, the reason why? He still had not figured it out

He heard a rustling sound behind him and turned to see Charles Brandon waking up in his chair, Charles had stayed with him every minute, and so had Linacre, who was currently asleep on another chair, the difference was that Charles was their by choice, whilst Henry would not let Linacre leave for fear that he was the only one that could save Edward

"How is he?" Charles asked, looking at the small boy, he didn't even dare think about what would happen if Edward died

Henry remained silent, so Charles tried a different approach

"How is the Queen?" he asked frightfully

Henry turned at look at him, he didn't look like the arrogant powerful King he was, no, he looked like a burning man, about to face the devil himself

"Their...their isn't much of a chance that she will live through the plague" Henry said heartbroken

Charles looked mournfully at his best friend, although Henry had cheated countless times, his love for Katherine was obvious

"Maybe you should send Doctor Linacre to her" he said staring at Henry

Henry regretfully shook his head back and forth, "I can't "he sobbed, looking at the small boy, "Katherine would not want me to, Edward needs Linacre...she understands"

"At least go to see her" Charles said stubbornly, but Henry was already shaking his head "she is your wife-"

"And he is my son" Henry roared looking at Edward, "whether I like it or not...Edward is more important then Katherine" he said with a heavy heart

All Charles could do was look at the broken man that was the King of England

"I'll go to her" Charles said, Henry's head snapped up, their eyes clashing, "I'll give her whatever message you want, I'll tell her how Edward is and I'll check on Mary" he said

The look on Henry's face told him how much it meant to him, Henry nodded his head

"Tell her I love her "Henry said, "and that Edward is on the mend" at Charles startled look, he continued, "she is a dying woman, and that little lie will mean more to her then you could ever imagine"

Charles would have loved to have argued but he knew that Henry was speaking to him as his King and not as his best friend

"Very well" he said getting up and heading to Whitehall

**THE~QUEEN**

Queen Katherine knew that she was close to death, but like others, she did not fear death, she welcomed it

Katherine believed in the lord and all his powers, she knew that she had lived her life the way God expected all his subjects to live, to her death did not mean the unknown but a chance to see everyone that had left her, her mother, her father and her beloved Arthur, although she loved Henry, a piece of her heart had always belonged to Arthur, the shy Prince that did everything in his power to protect her at Ludlow, the young man that use to pass her secret notes to make her feel better, the young man she had first fallen head over heals in love with.

Henry was fantastic but Arthur had been majestic

How she longed to see him again, but she still had matters to do before she passed on, the fate of her children was unknown, if Edward died, then she didn't know what would happen to Mary, if Henry did not have any more children, then their was no way Mary could go to France, she would be stuck in England fighting a battle for a crown that was rightfully hers, but if Edward lived, then everything would be alright, he would one day be King of England and Mary would be Queen of France, both of her children would be in positions of power, they'd be safe.

The door to her room suddenly opened and Lady Darrell walked in and kneeled beside the bed, a worried look on her face

"Your Majesty" Lady Darrell said, "His grace the duke of Suffolk is here to see you"

Katherine lifted herself up higher on the pillows and nodded her head, at once Lady Darrell rushed to the door and Charles Brandon walked in, he walked to the bed and bowed

"Your grace" Katherine said quietly, she did not have the strength to talk

Charles tried to smiled but it came out as more of a grimace

"Do I look that bad?" joked Katherine

Charles looked aghast , his eyes wide

"Of course not your Majesty" he said quickly, "You look like the Queen of England" he smiled mournfully, it was obvious she was going to die, and the thought of Henry's and the children's reaction was what made his heart throb

"I've just been to see the Princess Mary" he smiled, trying to change the topic

Katherine leaned closer, a small smile gracing her face

"How is she?" Katherine asked, Mary had been taken to her chambers once news of the plague had reached them and she was not allowed out until the deadly disease had passed through London

"Content" Charles said, "no child likes being stuck in their chambers for so long" he elaborated, "but she prays everyday for you and Edward, and she practises her music all day and night" he laughed

Katherine beamed, Mary was happy and she truly hoped she remained that way throughout her life

"The King has not left Prince Edwards bedside, neither has Doctor Linacre, the King also wished for me to tell you that he loves you" Charles said

"Thank you, your grace" Katherine said, she then asked the question that she was desperate to know the answer of, "How is Edward?"

She could feel her heart rapidly beating against her chest; she closed her eyes in desperation, praying that Charles said the words she wanted to hear

"He is getting better" Charles said so low that Katherine was sure she had misheard him

She opened her eyes and looked at Charles

"He will live?" she asked, trying but failing to crush the hope she felt

Right then and there, Charles did the only thing he could think of

He lied

"Yes" he said, "Prince Edward shall live" as he saw the look of relief on the Queen's face, his only thought was _'Charles, my boy, you are going straight to hell'_

Later that night all the Queen felt was peace, everything was going to be fine, her children were going to be fine, both would grow old and live happily lives, and one day her grandchildren would be sitting on the thrones of England and France

As she closed her eyes one final time, Katherine saw the smiling faces of her children, and slowly she saw their faces age, until the little boy and girl changed to look like young adults, she saw Edward as the spitting image of Henry and Mary was a mixture of the two but the one thing that remained the same between the adult version and the child version of her two kids, were the smiles on their faces and slowly the two faces transformed into that of a young man, a young man with red hair and midnight blue eyes, Henry's eye's, Edwards eyes but these eyes belonged to her first love, Prince Arthur of Wales

Arthur smiled down at her and held his hand out to her, in her head Katherine grabbed his arm and let him pull her to him and in that second Catalina de Aragon, Queen Katherine of England, mother to Prince Edward and Princess Mary, wife to King Henry and Prince Arthur, and infanta of Spain took her dying breath.

**THE~QUEEN**

"How is he?" Henry asked Doctor Linacre, it was well past midnight and dawn was soon approaching

"He still has a fever, my lord" Linacre replied sadly, seeing the look Henry was giving him, he added, "there are many remedies I have yet to try"

"Well then try them already" Henry growled

It was an hour later that Henry was trying to fight off sleep, but it soon became apparent that he was fighting a losing battle, as he succumbed to sleep, still sitting in the chair next to Edwards bed, his head falling right next to his son's hand

He was oddly enough in a peaceful sleep, when felt what he assumed to be a tug on his hair, he tried to keep on sleeping but the attack on his hair kept going, reluctantly he opened his eyes, only to see midnight blue eyes staring back at him

He jolted upright, not believing the sight in front of him

Edward although still pale and covered in sweat, had his eye's open

Not daring to believe the sight in front of him, Henry touched Edward's forehead, with a joyous heart he realised that the fever was gone, he sat on the bed, and pulled Edward to him, thanking God over and over

"My boy" he kept repeating, as he smothered Edward

"Your Majesty that is quite unwise" said a voice

Henry turned his head to see Charles and Doctor Linacre wide awake and on their feet, both with broad grins, Linacre was the one that had spoken

Henry immediately let go of Edward and settled him back into bed, kissing his forehead

"My lord" Henry said to Charles, his eyes twinkling "send for the bishop of London and tell him to prepare a special mass in the chapel royal, to give thanks to God for my son" Henry chuckled

"Of course my Lord" Charles beamed, heading for the door, but before he reached it a messenger ran into the room, ignoring all the stares he blurted out

"Your Majesty, the Queen of England is dead"

Sadly for the messenger, Henry had a thing for killing them

**THE~QUEEN**

**Remember I'm addicted to reviews, and they really do put a smile on my face**


	8. Hal

**This chapter was so difficult to write but I am so glad that It's out there, It's a lot longer then my usual standard so I'm quite pleased with myself, and thank you for all the reviews, I loved them**

**Notice the time skip, people **

**I had to replace this chapter because for some reason an important sentence was cut out when I uploaded it, so I'm just reposting it, if you've already read it, then there is really no reason to read it again, it's exactly the same except this time what Mary says to Hal is quite clear, so if you want you can just scroll down and see **

**June 1519**

**~THE~QUEEN~**

It had been four months since the death of Queen Katherine, and Anne could honestly say that they had been the hardest four months of her life, she had always liked the Queen, she was a woman of integrity and honour, a fair woman and a fantastic Queen, but what really made these four months difficult was watching how the royal family coped with the loss

King Henry had locked himself in his chambers for days, mourning the loss of his wife alone, which left Anne and all the other ladies to comfort the grieving children, Mary and Edward had broken down unable to believe that their mother was no longer in this world, Mary had lost interest in her studies, instead choosing to stay in her chambers playing her instruments, whilst poor Edward just became quiet, he was no longer the robust little boy that would sneak out into the gardens to play with this toy soldiers, he was no longer the same Edward that had begged her to teach him something better then French, he was no longer the boy with the cheeky smile and the twinkling blue eyes

Edward had effectively changed from a five year old who could want for nothing, to one that had seen the cruelties in the world

The entire court had to wear black for three months, Anne was sure it was one of the longest mourning periods a Queens ever had, and throughout these past months Anne had surprisingly started to see a different side to the King, once he had emerged from his chambers, he took action, temporarily relocating the children to Whitehall, so that they were close to him, he stopped paying attention to the woman of court and he ignored Cardinal Wolsey's suggestion of marriage, he spent every second trying to make his children smile

In her eyes he was no longer the arrogant, cheating King who only cared for himself, but for the first time, Anne could see what Queen Katherine could, she saw a kind, handsome man, who was worthy of being King, a man that truly cared for his family, she could easily see the handsome prince from her dreams as a little girl, the one that would save her from her overbearing family, but instead of a Prince, Anne's dreams were now all about a certain King

She sat with the other ladies on the castle steps, watching over the royal family in the garden, Henry Mary and Edward stood by a pond, with a fishing rod in their hands, Anne smiled as Henry was trying and failing to show the children how to properly catch a fish, in all honesty he looked like a mad man, it was when she heard the pearling laughter of the royal children that she realised that he was doing in on purpose

It was rare to see either Mary or Edward smile now, let alone laugh, and she was truly grateful to the King, she had missed the sounds of laughter that had filled Windsor castle, Anne wasn't sure how it had happened, but in the past months she spent working at Windsor, she realised that she had truly started to care about Mary and Edward as more then just her charges, she cared about them as a mother would care about her children, she loved how Mary would always try to upstage her brother, and how Edward just didn't care that he was the Prince of Wales

"I have something to tell you" Henry said seriously, kneeling down in front of Mary and Edward so he was eye level to them , they were close enough that Anne could hear the conversation

"What is it papa?" asked Mary

"Do you both know who Henry Fitzroy is?" asked Henry, both children went rigid, but it was Edward who nodded his head

"Good boy" Henry smiled, breathing out a sigh of relief, "Henry shall be joining us here at Whitehall, and then he will live with the two of you at Windsor"

"What!" surprisingly it wasn't Mary who had yelled out but calm sweet Edward

Henry looked just as shocked as Anne

"He can't" Edward said despair laced in his words

"Is he not your brother?" asked Henry his eyes going cold, there was really only one answer, but Edward chose to remain silent

"Henry Fitzroy shall be here in three days and I expect the both of you to treat him like you would treat each other" Henry snapped

"Well I won't" Edward snapped right back, folding his arms across his chest, the entire garden suddenly became quiet, everyone straining to hear the conversation

Henry tried calming himself down, if it was anybody but his Edward he would have made them pay, but in this case he looked over Edwards head to Lady Salisbury and the command was clear in his eyes, remove him at once

Lady Salisbury jumped up at once and scurried over

"Your Majesty" she bowed, "come on children" she said soothingly, Anne got up and followed everybody back up to the castle, she turned around at the last second to see Henry standing in the middle of the garden, his eyes filled with despair, he looked like a little boy lost, and the sight tore at Anne's heart

**THE~QUEEN**

Anne sat in front of Edward speaking French; it was his job to repeat what she said

"l'échec n'est pas une option" Anne said with a French accent

"l'éch...n'est ...p..p..pas unn op" Edward stuttered, trying to remember what she had said, he slumped back in his chair, giving up

"No your sire, repeat after me" Anne said gently

She repeated the French phrase, and again Edward got the phrase wrong, which was highly unusual

"What is the matter Your Highness?" Anne asked getting off of her chair, and kneeling in front of the young boy

"Nothing, my lady" Edward said robotically, "I am truly sorry for getting it wrong again"

Anne took a deep breath to calm herself, four months ago; Edward would have just shrugged his shoulders and started talking about horses, now he was actually taking his studies seriously

"Is this about Henry Fitzroy?" Anne asked calmly, when she saw the flash of anger in Edwards eyes she knew that she was right, "does it trouble you that he shall be here" continued Anne cautiously

"I don't want him here" Edward snapped

"Why not?" Anne asked soothingly, ignoring the stares of the other ladies in the room

There was a slight pause, before Edward took a deep breath and answered

"Mama would never have allowed it" he said sadly, trying to fight back tears, Anne brushed his bangs out of his eyes; his hair had really grown the past four months

"One day you will be a great King, Edward" Anne said smiling up at the small boy, "I know you will be, and very strong, like your father" she added, "but also fair and merciful just like your mother, I want you to be a just ruler" she said staring into his eyes, "and then indeed you shall be a great King" she beamed , "And if you are going to become a great King, then you must be a great Prince" she said sternly, "And do you think Princes' would turn their backs on their brothers?" she asked gently

"He's not my brother" Edward said petulantly

"Is he not your fathers' son?" Anne asked holding Edwards hands

"Yes" Edward sighed

"Then he is your brother" Anne said confidently, "and I expect you to treat him like one"

Edward smirked

"You can't tell me what to do" he said cheekily

"No, I can not" Anne said reasonably, "but it is what I would expect from a great Prince" she smirked

"Do you really think I'll be a great King" Edward asked cautiously

Anne just smiled; "The greatest King England's ever had" she beamed

"Really?" Edward asked disbelievingly, a glimmer of hope in his eyes

"With all my heart" smiled Anne

"l'échec n'est pas une option" Edward repeated, saying the phrase perfectly, his eyes lightning up

"And what does it mean" Anne asked cheekily

"Failure is not an option" Edward repeated in English, a twinkle that had been absent for the past four months back in his eyes

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Elizabeth Blount was hugging her eldest child as hard as she possibly could; her Henry was dressed up in the finest clothes, gifts from King Henry to welcome his son back to court

Today Henry would be leaving his home and everything he had ever known, for a life of comfort and glamour; he was going to be made a Duke, by the King, a great honour, although to Elizabeth it felt like her son was being ripped out of her womb, even if she was the one that had agreed to it all

Elizabeth could not hold the tears back as she said goodbye

"Mama, you're squashing me" Henry complained as Elizabeth hugged him

"Now Henry listen to me" Elizabeth said as she hastily wiped the tears from her face, "you're going to live in a big castle now" she said seriously, "you'll have lots of servants to help you and look after you...but you must promise me you'll be a good boy, thoughtful and kind to those around you" she said as tears fell down her cheeks, "you may be set above them" she said talking through the lump in her throat, "but if I found you've grown too proud, I will be sad and displeased" she finished

Henry hugged her

"I promise mama" he said, trying to hold back his own tears, although he was now seven, Henry didn't consider himself a big boy, like mama always said he was

"And I promise that I will come and see you as often as I can" she smiled, "And I'm sure your new house will be very grand" she said pulling back so she could see him, "I love you, my darling boy"

She looked at the men that had come to collect him

"You may take him" she said taking a step back, as she watched her eldest son walk out her life

**~THE~QUEEN~**

Henry Fitzroy nervously walked through the corridors of Whitehall, he couldn't stop fidgeting, he had heard rumours about his father and his siblings, he had once caught a glimpse of his father as he rode through town but that was it, he didn't know how he was suppose to behave or what he was suppose to say, he was more nervous about meeting Edward and Mary then everybody else, he really wanted to be friends with them, he could imagine all the fun they could have in a big castle, he already had a sister and a brother, Elizabeth and George Tailboys, and he was really going to miss them, but mama had promised that she would try and bring them with her, he was secretly hoping that all his brothers and sisters could become friends

The man he was following suddenly stopped walking in front of large oak doors and opened them with a flourish; he inclined his head, a signal for Henry to enter

He suddenly heard loud trumpets and a clear voice announcing his arrival, "Henry Fitzroy" said the voice

Suddenly the people in front of him parted like the sea, and started bowing or curtsying, he looked straight ahead at the dais on the other side of the room, as he walked he could only hear the sound of his footsteps echoing in the silent hall

There where four thrones he noticed, a really large one that was occupied by the man he recognised as King Henry, his father, the younger Henry suddenly realised that they looked nothing alike, Henry had inherited his mother's blond hair and green eyes, whilst the King had raven black hair and midnight blue eyes, there was a throne on either side of the King and another next to the one on the left, on the King's right side sat a small boy that looked like a miniature version of the King, Prince Edward, he realised, the big difference was that whilst the King had a large smile on his face the Prince just looked indifferent, and on the Kings left side, sitting next to the empty throne was a young girl. With a heart shaped face, dark hair and warm chocolate brown eyes, Princess Mary really did look like her mother, but the young girl was not looking him, she was staring straight ahead completely ignoring his presence, he stood in front of the King and remembered what he was told to do, he climbed the dais and kneeled in front of his father

A man behind him started talking

"Henry Fitzroy, you are by order and commission of his Majesty King Henry, today created Duke of Richmond and of Somerset and Earl of Nottingham" as the man finished speaking, the King suddenly stood up, a man held out a cushion with a crown on top, the crown looked exactly like the ones Edward and Mary had on their heads

The King took the crown and placed it on Henry's head, he then took a jewel encrusted dagger and handed it to him with a smile

"Rise your grace" beamed the King, as he lifted Henry up and placed him on the throne besides Mary, a fanfare suddenly rang out and the festivities began

THE**~QUEEN~**

It was hours later when Hal as the King had started to call him was settling into bed in the royal nursery, he had tried to tell the King that he was known as Harry, but his father just said that that was the old him, the new him, was to be known as Hal, it was all so strange to him, he had never had so many ladies attending to him, or so many people paying him so much attention, but the two people he really wanted to talk to seemed to hate him, Hal had tried to talk Mary but she had simply ignored him and then he had tried talking to Edward but Edward was more focused on the dagger he had received then what he had to say

As he finished getting into his nightclothes Hal was starting to realise how things worked at Whitehall, although Mary and now he were royal children, Edwards needs came before theirs, if it was too hot the windows would be opened for him and if it were to cold, the fireplace would be lit, he assumed it was because Edward would be King one day, but it was strange, to be so important, yet insignificant at the same time

Edward and Mary where sitting at a table in the middle of the room playing a game of cards, but both where in their nightclothes, Hal took a chance and swiftly walked over to them

"Can I play" he asked fearfully, the two children just stared at him, and he hoped that they would say yes, he didn't want to be left out

Edward started talking in what Hal thought was French to Mary, Mary replied back in French, not taking her eyes off of him, it was like a predator watching its prey, it slightly unnerved Hal

It soon seemed like they where having some sort of an argument, and after a while Edward seemed to win

Mary sighed dramatically, and arched an eye brow; "fine" she said with an air of authority, "you can play"

Relief flooded through his system as he sat down, trying to ignore all the woman in the room, they seemed to always be there, lurking in the shadows, just waiting to see if they needed anything

He quickly understood the rules of the game, but he soon realised that he had made a big mistake

He had beaten Mary

"Uh oh" Edward said as Mary's cold gaze fell on him, making his skin prickle

She started rapidly talking in Spanish, and Hal didn't understand a single word of it, but from Edwards expression he was thankful that he had no idea what she was saying, Mary jumped off the chair and glared at him, she then said the four words he had never wanted to hear

"You-Don't-Belong-Here" she spat and then marched off to her bed, leaving a very shaken up Prince Hal behind her

**~THE~QUEEN~**

"so you don't want Prince Henry as the second in line, after Prince Edward?" asked cardinal Wolsey, shocked, he had thought the whole point of bringing the bastard to court was to have him as a second option, in case anything ever happened to Edward, he had believed the Queens death and Edwards illness had made him aware that he need a spare Prince

"No" snapped Henry, "Mary is to be above Hal in ranking, she is after Edward in the line of succession"

"May I ask why, your Majesty?" asked Cardinal Wolsey, seriously confused

Henry like his daughter sighed dramatically, "Because" he snapped, "Mary and Edward already feel threatened by Hal, and this shall calm their fears, and the line of succession doesn't really matter" Henry sighed, "Edward shall become King, Mary shall become Queen of France and Hal shall die a Duke, now leave" he snapped

"Your Majesty" bowed Wolsey, as he exited the study, nearly bumping into the lady Anne on his way out, he briefly wondered why she was seeing the King, before he stalked off

Henry was about to snap at Wolsey for coming back when his eyes fell on a dark haired beauty, his dark haired beauty, Henry tried and failed to contain his smile

Anne looked hesitant before she started talking

"You asked for me, Your Majesty" she said gently

"Yes" Henry beamed, he was really proud of himself for getting his son back, he was determined that they would all become one big happy family, the only thing missing now was the woman that stood in front of him, because now Henry realised why she infuriated him so easily, why he couldn't hurt her and why all his thoughts were filled with her, Henry with a jolt had realised that he was in love with Anne Boleyn

It was hard to admit it to himself, it had come as a big surprise, he had only realised a month ago, when he saw her dancing with her brother, the anger that consumed him, seeing her in the arms of another, it took him a while to understand what the feeling was, and with sick revelation he realised that it was jealousy

He was jealous, the thought was ludicrous, the last time he had felt jealousy was when his beloved Katherine had married Arthur, but as time went on the feeling just got worse, he had even come close to ripping off Mark Smeaton's hand when he had placed it on Anne's hip as they danced

He had thought about asking her to become his mistress again but he was seriously worried that she might slap him, she looked close to it the last time, and with everything that had happened with her sister he doubted she wanted to spend any time with him, and he just couldn't think about himself, Mary and Edward and now Hal counted on him, he couldn't just throw another woman at them and expect them to call her mother, he couldn't just make her his Queen, but it was after he had seen her speaking to Edward, that speech she had given had made all his bad thoughts disappear, he was sure that all his children liked or would eventually like Anne and he had made a mistake with Mary Boleyn but there was nothing he could do about that, it was after another sleepless night thinking of Anne that Henry had decided that one way or the other she was going to be his

"I wanted to apologise" he said sheepishly "and I was hoping that we could start again, as friends" he added, at her incredulous look

Anne seemed to realise that she was staring, she quickly snapped out of it

"Friends?" she asked a little disbelieving

'_No'_ he thought, _'I want to be so much more'_

"Yes, Friends" he smiled, keeping his wayward thoughts to himself

Anne smirked at him

"Very well" she smiled, "we shall be friends"

"And you know what friends do, don't you?" asked King Henry

"No, what?" Anne asked genuinely curious

"They hunt" Henry said cheekily, "so tomorrow, will you accompany, myself, Mary, Hal and Edward on a hunting trip?"

Anne realise with a jolt that he was asking and not ordering

'_Well, well, well'_ she thought amused, _'someone has grown up"_

"Well?" Henry asked impatiently

'_Then again, maybe not'_ she thought

"Very well" smiled Anne, "I shall see you tomorrow"

"Till tomorrow, my lady" Henry beamed, he was one step closer to winning her heart

**~THE~QUEEN~**

**It looks like our dear King Henry has a bit of an obsession, poor him, and little Hal is going to find it difficult to adapt to royal life, especially with siblings like his, It looks like both Henrys' are going through a bit of a difficult time, thanks for reading and I am sadly addicted to reviews! The button is just below you**


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